PESHAWAR: Government should stop M/s Maersk Pakistan Pvt Ltd and Qasim International Containers Terminal from taking extra demurrage and detention charges to clear legally imported consignments.
Maersk Pakistan and QICT violated SRO 1220 and section 14A of Customs Acts 1969 by taking extra demurrage and detention charges other than collecting applied duty and taxes.
Advocate Mohib Kaka Kheil associated with Peshawar High Court told Customs Today in an interview that Maersk Pakistan is openly frustrating importers by forcefully delaying consignments to ask for bribe and hidden charges on the name of demurrage and detention charges.
The clearance of imports and exports has become major headache for traders through QICT and M/s Maersk Pakistan due to blackmailing of these companies and demanding of detention and demurrage charges and still the government is not taking any action against them, he added.
The Advocate said that Peshawar based importers have also been looted by M/s Maersk Pakistan and QICT by delaying consignments clearance at ports in order to demand ‘privileges’ which have caused serious losses to the import export activities to Afghanistan.
The government must not tolerate such gambling with national economy which causes huge economic losses along with diverting international traders from Pakistan to other countries, the advocate said and added Maersk and QICT are not only frustrating Pakistan based importers but also the multinational companies.
He said the Maersk shipping line forcefully delayed hundreds of consignments of Shell oil company after which proper action was taken by Shell Pakistan against Maersk shipping line. Similar quick action is required by the government against above-mentioned shipping line and terminal operator. The money recovered from Maersk shipping line could be used in safeguarding economic development of Pakistan.
The Maersk shipping line must be further investigated for taking demurrage and detention charges even after issuance of certificate by customs, he added.
